Annual Meetings & Technical Exchanges

The Governors’ Climate and Forests Task Force (GCF Task Force) facilitates political engagement and leadership by Governors and their high-level staff in national, regional, and international processes. Since 2009, this has included GCF Task Force Annual Meetings and Technical Exchanges where GCF Task Force Governors and their high-level staff participate engage with leaders from other governments, the private sector, civil society, and indigenous and local communities.

Upcoming Annual Meeting

The 2024 GCF Task Force Annual Meeting, hosted by Governor Manuel Gambini Rupay, will take place in Ucayali, Peru from October 7-11. This key event will assemble hundreds of participants from local, regional, and global communities, including an important convening of Indigenous leaders and the GCF Task Force Global Committee of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities. The focus will be on advancing the New Forest Economy, with particular emphasis on innovative financing mechanisms aimed at supporting sustainable development.

The agenda will feature a mix of plenaries, panels, and dialogue, all designed to deepen understanding and foster actionable insights into sustainable economic practices. Attendees can expect a series of high-level announcements and the launch of a comprehensive Blueprint for a New Forest Economy.

Participants will also have the opportunity for one-on-one discussions with international partners and GCF Task Force members. Additionally, field visits in Ucayali will showcase practical examples of the New Forest Economy, offering attendees a chance for technical exchange and firsthand observation of innovative economic models in action. This annual meeting promises to be a pivotal event for all stakeholders involved in forest conservation and economic sustainability. Further details on the full agenda are available here.

Past Meetings

Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia

Our 2024 Technical Exchange Meeting in Santa Cruz, Bolivia was a success! Co-hosted by the departmental governments of Santa Cruz, Pando and Tarija, the meeting explored innovative approaches to forest management, indigenous knowledge incorporation, and cutting-edge technologies. This meeting set the stage for more collaborative actions toward sustainable development and climate resilience, culminating in the next annual meeting in the second semester of 2024 in Ucayali, Peru. You can check out the agenda here. And, a summary of the meeting results are available here.

Yucatan, Mexico

Thank you to all who participated in and supported the 13th Annual Meeting of the GCF Task Force hosted by the Government of Yucatan, Mexico between February 7-10, 2023, in the beautiful city of Merida. This meeting built on the launch of the Manaus Action Plan in Amazonas, Brazil in March 2022 and the technical exchange of experiences that took place in San Martin, Peru in October 2022. Updated information on the results of the meeting are available on our Yucatan Annual Meeting webpage.

San Martin, Peru

Under the leadership of Governor Pedro Bogarin Vargas, the Government of San Martin, Peru and the GCF Task Force hosted an Intercambio de Experiencias in San Martin from October 10-13, 2022. This important technical exchange promoted the sharing of experiences from within and across the GCF Task Force network of subnational governments, with a particular focus on the 7 Peruvian members of the network. Click here for more details.

Manaus, Brazil

The 12th Annual Meeting of the GCF Task Force convened in Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil, March 16th-18th, 2022, at the Vasco Vasques Convention Center – Manaus. For three days, Governors and civil servants from GCF Task Force states and provinces – which encompasses more than one-third of the world’s tropical forests – joined with leaders from the private sector, civil society, Indigenous peoples and local communities, national governments, and international organizations. Together, they highlighted collaborative strategies and approaches for reducing deforestation in tropical forest states and provinces and the interrelated goals of reducing poverty, improving livelihoods, securing rights and protecting cultures, promoting private investments, and building low-emissions, forest-based economies. More information on the meeting agenda is available at here. Meeting results are available here.